Character Profile: Baki Hanma

To the general public, Baki Hanma is certainly one of the most mysterious fighters ever to show up. However, in the secret fighting arena under Tokyo Dome, he is revered as one of its greatest champions. This praise is not just handed aimlessly at him; Baki is one of the best natural fighters that has ever been seen.

But natural talent is not just one of Baki's strengths. Studying the many martial artists in Japan is one of the ways he improves himself. The main reason that he entered the Shinshinkai tournament was to face Atsushi Suedo to learn karate rapidly so that he could face Kosho Shinogi in the secret arena.

Baki's attitude while he is fighting is exuberant, almost playful. He seems to enjoy fighting strong opponents. This behavior seems to confuse a lot of the many fighters that he faces and they almost always take him lightly - until they see the many scars on his body.

But all through this, Baki respects every opponent he faces. In his battle with Shinogi, he knocked him out rather than shatter his arm, because he knew if he did, Shinogi would not be able to use karate again. Well, either that or he feared Shinogi Kosho would retaliate with kicks and "At that time I didn't have the strength to withstand that" (his words to Shinogi in the clinic).